Joakim Noah reveals how Florida can win another national title, talks teaming up with BetterHelp

Joakim Noah believes that the Florida Gators men’s basketball team has what it takes to win the national title for the second consecutive season. On3 recently spoke to the former Florida and NBA star, who shared his thoughts on the Gators’ chances of winning their fourth title in school history.

“I think the most exciting thing is they’re playing great basketball at the end of the year,” Joakim Noah told On3. “You can tell that the chemistry’s there, the confidence is there. And I think that these are all guys that are really proud to wear that uniform. And I think in the beginning of the year, they definitely took a couple Ls. And I think that sometimes those losses, they help shape you as a team. And all you want to do at this time of year is be playing your best basketball, and that’s what the Florida Gators are doing.”

Noah knows what it takes to win back-to-back championships, as he was on the Florida teams that won it all in 2006 and 2007. The 41-year-old played a big role in the team’s success, being named NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player in 2006, and he was a consensus second-team All-American in 2007.

When the 2007 Gators won the title, it was the first time a program won back-to-back NCAA men’s basketball championships since Duke in 1992. Noah looked back at his time at Florida and shared how the 2007 run was different from 2006.

Joakim Noah gives a nationwide pep talk for BetterHelp

“The difference between the first one and the second one is completely different experiences,” he said. The expectations are a lot higher, and it was my first time dealing with real pressure and expectations. But I think that for me personally, it’s definitely a big part of my journey. I feel like I had to show a lot of growth because it was hard. It was hard just dealing with those expectations for the first time. So I’m really happy that I had great coaches, and I had my father there supporting me. I had my friends there supporting me.”

As March Madness approaches, Noah has partnered with BetterHelp for the launch of “Mind Over Madness.” BetterHelp is donating an initial 1,000 hours of free therapy and will unlock an additional 10 hours of every assist recorded during the men’s and women’s national tournaments. Based on the history of the tournaments, BetterHelp could unlock over 50,000 hours of free therapy nationwide. And as part of “Mind Over Madness,” Noah has delivered a nationwide pep talk at a time when the pressure is at its highest.

“Man, I couldn’t be more proud than to be with BetterHelp,” Noah said. “This is a great company that has a great online presence for young people who need help. Obviously, when you think of social media and all the pressures that our young people are dealing with, just to have that extra presence that somebody just helping you out, I think that that’s something that’s very positive. So when the opportunity came, I just jumped on it right away.”